Fall
outs
at the
Executive Elections
Kingsley
Agyemang
Fellow Kukrudites,
kindly permit me to
use this medium to
share my thoughts
with you on the
executive elections
held last night. In
fact, if the
goodwill I received
from fellow members
with regards to my
recent postings on
this site is
anything to go by,
then I can
confidently say that
over 80% of the
entire membership
appreciates my good
work.
I am indeed,
encouraged by the
pieces of advice
given me and I
assure my
well-wishers that
such advice would be
taken in good faith.
Even
though, I did not
make any formal
introduction to the
gathering, I could
see a lot of people
were anxiously
trying to catch a
glimpse of Katakyie
Kwame Opoku Agyemang,
the man whose name
drives away 1000s of
NDC members.
It
would interest
readers to note that
one gentleman who
sat behind me tapped
my shoulder and
asked politely,
'have you set eyes
on the guy called
Katakyie'? I burst
into laughter and
replied, you are
talking to the guy
himself.
Incidentally, he
happened to be my
senior at Opoku Ware
School.
Ladies and
gentlemen, before I
air my views on the
elections, let me
take this
opportunity to
congratulate
ourselves for the
high sense of
maturity exhibited
at congress. To me,
the winner is the
NPP and the loser,
the NDC. I
congratulate all the
individual winners
for their
achievements and to
the gallant losers,
I say better luck
next time and
remember, our
greatest glory lies
not in never falling
but in rising every
time we fall.
My brothers and
sisters, it is
equally significant
to bring to the fore
some of the lapses
that occurred so
that measures could
be taken to
ameliorate the
situation.
In my
opinion, the conduct
of the Chairperson
of the EC was not
the best. She raised
a lot of issues
which needed some
serious
deliberations but
the house just
ignored them and
those who were so
eager to share their
thoughts were either
ignored or somehow
intimidated from
speaking. Mrs.
Comfort Arthur
informed the august
house of the
presence of 2 Police
Officers because the
EC had received
threats on the NPP
googlegroups
website.
This
is a very serious
allegation which
needed a serious
attention. What
prevented the police
to arrest the person
if indeed her office
received the alleged
threat? What was her
evidence and who
gave her the power
to invite the
police? Did the
house appoint the EC
to conduct the
executive elections
or to send
invitations to the
police? Is she the
only person who
reads what is posted
onto the site? What
prevented her from
mentioning the name
of the person who
threatened her to
the house or to the
police? Did she
think about the
consequences of the
presence of the
police at our AGM?
Was she confused
about these three
words 'threat,
queries and
criticism? Can I say
she mistook
criticism for
threat?
Fellow compatriots,
criticism, according
to Sir Winston
Churchill, may not
be agreeable but it
is necessary. It
fulfills the same
function as pain in
the human body. It
calls attention to
an unhealthy state
of things.
Therefore, whoever
does not want to be
criticised should do
nothing, say nothing
and be nothing. In
fact, when the
information about
the police
invitation reached
me, I took it as a
joke because a mind
conscious of
innocence laughs at
lies of rumour. Why
did the EC entertain
any fear if it
taught it was doing
the right thing
after all, he who
has nothing to hide
has nothing to fear?
In
the Bible, it is
learnt that when God
asked Cain about the
whereabouts of his
brother, Abel, the
former retorted 'am
I the keeper of my
bother'? God said to
him 'enti woy33 no
yie a anka w'anim
ante? The above
notwithstanding, the
behaviour of Mrs.
Arthur was not the
best in terms of how
she handled the
elections. She was a
bit autocratic as
she prevented Mr.
Justin Duah, Mr.
Bafour and myself
from voicing our
concerns. She seemed
to be a master of
all but in this
world nobody and I
mean nobody has a
repository of
knowledge.
Personally, I don't
blame her because as
Vincent Lombardi
puts it, 'there are
two kinds of people.
Those who do the
hard
work and
those who take the
credit; choose the
first group because
there are less
competitors'. I
think Mrs. Arthur
rather chose the 2nd
group because she
never gave any
credit to Nana Otu
Turkson, who did all
the EC job.
Colleagues, remember
just last week, Mr.
Atta-Krufi issued a
statement that the
qualification/disqualification
of Mr. Gyamfi would
be decided at the
AGM. How come Mrs.
Arthur made a
unilateral decision
to postpone the
election of
Organiser and
insisted that a
committee would set
up to investigate
the serious
allegations raised
by the concerned
members? Who gave
her the mandate to
set up another
committee and how
will the composition
be? When will the
election come off?
Is she going to bear
the cost involved in
the supposedly
by-election, in case
Mr. Gyamfi wins his
case? At one point
Mrs. Arthur said,
'we the EC have the
power to conduct the
election and what we
say is final. The
election for the
position of
Organiser has been
postponed. No
comment on it'. In
another development,
she says, it is up
the house to decide
whether to separate
voters from
non-voters'. Is this
not a case of double
standard?
Leadership is not
manifested by
coercion, even
against the
resented. We are all
mature and nobody
should take us as
her school kids. The
Adhoc EC led by Mrs.
Arthur might now be
thinking that it
silenced some
people, especially
the youth to win the
day but as Abraham
Lincoln said, 'You
can fool some people
for sometime but you
can't fool all the
people all the
time'. I would add
that if you fool me
for the first time,
shame unto you but
for the second time,
shame unto me.
Critically examining
Mrs. Arthur's
attitude on the day,
can she have the
have the moral
authority to
criticise Poodle
Mills, Jerry Yoko
Gari Rawlings and
his notorious dirty
criminals on the
basis of 'machoism'
in our politics,
mediocrity and
autocracy? Democracy
is about what the
people need or want
and not what the
leaders think we
want or need. We
have only one party
with no alternative,
that is the New
Patriotic Party.
According to Sir
Winston Churchill,
some men change
their party for the
sake of their
principles; others
their principles for
the sake of their
party. We chose the
latter because the
NPP is our soul.
In conclusion, I
urge the incoming
administration to
remove all the
barriers to youth
development and
empowerment in the
UK branch before the
situation gets out
of control. The NPP
won the 2000 general
elections because of
the major role
played by the foot
soldiers. Likewise,
did it lose in 2008
by the apathy shown
by the youth. Our
aim of recapturing
political power
through the 3 Rs
will be meaningless
unless we give equal
attention to the
youth. When it is
obvious that the
goals cannot be
reached, don't
adjust the goals,
adjust the action
steps which in this
case, is our ability
to be transparent
and tolerate
opposing views. Noam
Chomski posits, it
is the responsibilty
of intellectuals to
speak the truth and
expose lies. This, I
have done as an
intellectual and do
hope that the EC
will invite 15000
police officers to
our next AGM as the
NDC did at Chereponi.
Thank you all and
Twereduampon Kwame
bless us all.
Kukrudu! Kuklrudu!
Katakyie Kwame Opoku
Agyemang, Hull.
Kingsley
Agyemang,
UK
